All posts tagged: spirituality

Thoughts Become Things

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Well that sounds easy enough. I’ll just think about all the things I want in my life and they’ll manifest NOW! Haha if only it was that simple. Well, it could be if we were in a place of complete allowing. Our intentions would be pure, our focus razor-sharp, and in an instant our desires would be fulfilled. But like everything in our perfect universe, this principle is based on that of duality, and on the opposite end of the spectrum we have resistance. allowing <<<  >>>  resistance Resistance is what ultimately stops us from fulfilling our desires. It keeps us stuck in the lack of it (the job/healthy body/relationship/money, etc.) and draws that which is like itself towards us. Haven’t you noticed when you don’t have resistance to something, how easily it comes into your life? It’s like the more you want something from a place of need, the more resistance is created, and the harder it is to get it. “If you are resisting anything, you are focused upon it, pushing against it, and activating the vibration of …

A Time To Let Loose

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This Friday’s upcoming full moon in fun-loving Sagittarius should be called the party moon, and not the strawberry moon as it’s known in the U.S. In contrast to New Moons which represent rebirth and new beginnings, Full Moons embody clarity and obtainment of desire. Basically, every month we get a chance to hone in on our desires, figure out what we really want, and then plant them like seeds into the universe on the eve of New Moon. Then we wait patiently for our intentions to blossom, and on Full Moon simultaneously release what no longer serves us. Aren’t we lucky folk? The moon & me The moon cycles have always been a part of our lives and we can see her effects throughout nature and within ourselves. As Selacia describes on her blog, “The moon governs the natural world as well as our emotions, instincts, intuition, and unconscious. It is related to water, the element often described as being furthest from the rational realm.” We are of course made of 70% water, how can we not …

Wisdom from a Tree

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I got chased out my apartment this morning by very loud drilling resonating from downstairs. There was just no way I could meditate at home, so I got dressed and headed out to the park. Even though I love meditating in the park, I was slightly annoyed. So off I trotted and found a spot of shade under a big, beautiful tree that I often meditate near. As I was about to begin, I couldn’t help but be disturbed by the obvious traffic noise beside me. I considered moving deeper into the park but it was already very sunny and hot and not much shade available. Then I thought maybe I should stick with this. I looked up at this big, sturdy tree in front of me and wondered how he manages to stay so calm amidst all the chaos. So strong, so serene, so steady. The complete opposite of me. I wanted some of that. And then it hit me. There’s always that quiet, peaceful place within us. I know people often say that, but have you ever …

Food. Shelter. Love.

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What else do you need? I really enjoyed this recent Ted Talk by Mathias Lefebvre (aka Piano Man). His message is simple yet profound. And although it sounds idealistic and completely impossible in this current state of living, it’s most definitely something to aspire to. He asks us this question – what do we truly need to be happy in our lives? It’s a lot, LOT less than we think.

The Power of ‘Shreem’

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I’ve started doing my daily mantra meditation again and it feels good. Having experimented with  different mantras over the years, I seem to be pulled back to the one that my guru Christine (beautiful yogi and friend) gave me years ago. It was a gift offered to me after I completed by Yoga Teacher Training in 2008. At the time I was told that we shouldn’t share our special mantra with anyone as it would lose its power (I think this is traditional TM meditation practice), but I feel that the mantras are universal and all-powerful, so why can’t they be shared? We are, after all, one. What is Mantra Chanting Simply put, each mantra represents a certain sound frequency (energy) that dates back to ancient times. Mantras work on the principle of ‘like attracts like’, so the more you chant a specific mantra, the more those qualities will be developed in you. Mantras are vibrations, and as we know, we are made of energy, each vibrating at a different frequency – mantras have the power …

Taste Totally

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I’ve been thinking a lot about balance lately… mostly how I can get more of it in my life. The thing is, it seems balance can’t be forced. After all, it’s a natural law of the universe. I love this story from “The Book of Understanding” by OSHO: “In paradise one afternoon, in its most famous cafe, Lao Tzu, Confucius, and Buddha are sitting and chatting. The waiter comes with a tray that holds three glasses of the juice called “Life,” and offers them. Buddha immediately closes his eyes and refuses; he says, “Life is misery.” Confucius closes his eyes halfway – he is a middlist, and asks the waiter to give him the glass. He would like to have a sip – but just a sip, because without tasting how can one say whether life is misery or not? Confucius had a scientific mind; he was not much of a mystic, he had a very pragmatic, earthbound mind. He takes a sip and he says, “Buddha is right – life is misery.” Lao Tzu takes …

(Ha) + (Tha)

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People often confuse yoga for some sort of religion. They couldn’t be more wrong. It is in fact, as Yogi Bikram Choudhury states, “the science of living life correctly so that we can get to that point , our ultimate destination.” So why does Mr Bikram refer to it as the science of life? “Science helps us understand the physical world. Yoga helps us understand not just the physical body but also the mind and the Spirit. Yoga helps us understand nature; and nature helps us understand the voice of our spirit, or God.” The Symmetry of Hatha Hatha Yoga refers to the practice of yoga asanas (postures), pranayama (breathing exercises) and relaxation. In Sanskrit, Ha means ‘Sun’ and Tha means ‘Moon’. Isn’t that just perfection in itself? I’ve known this truth for a long time, but I love the way Bikram expresses it so simply and aptly in his book, Bikram Yoga. Let me share it with you… “In nature there is a strong symbiotic movement between the Sun and the Moon, a balance between …

What Ananda Taught Us

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A great Buddhist story from a book I’m reading (Awakening The Buddha Within) beautifully describes the balance between effort and effortlessness. It goes like this: “By the time Buddha became ill and died, he had been teaching for 45 years and many of his disciples had become enlightened. One who had not was Buddha’s ever-present attendant, Ananda. This might be seem strange because of all the disciples, Ananda had heard every word that the Buddha taught and memorised them all. But, due to his busy schedule, Ananda had little time for his own solitary meditation practice. Several months after the Buddha’s death, it became imperative for Ananda to become enlightened. The First Council was to take place in order to recite and codify all the teachings spoken by Buddha. Ananda was essential to this meeting, however, because he wasnt enlightened, he wasnt qualified to attend. Ananda did the only thing he could do under the circumstances: he went into retreat, a meditation marathon, striving round-the- clock for enlightenment. Finally it was the morning of the …

Lonely Isn’t a Dirty Word

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It’s simply a momentary state of being. It’s not the unspeakable demon that we sometimes prescribe it to be. It doesn’t need to be suffocated or suppressed. Perhaps it just needs to be recognised and nurtured. Maybe it just needs a little love. Not the kind of love that’s found in externals, but rather that deep, deep wholeness that we all feel oh so deep within. You know what I’m talking about. You know that you really are loved. You really are beautiful. You really are perfect, just as you are. Maybe you’ve convinced yourself otherwise, but deep down you know. “Your task is not to seek for Love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.”  ~ Rumi I know that sometimes it can feel like you really are alone and infinitesimal in this big, colossal world. But don’t forget that every day, every step, every thought you think and feeling you feel, Mother Earth is there supporting you. Enveloping you in her sturdy grounds …

Do Something Good

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“We are visitors on this planet. We are here for ninety, or a hundred years at the very most. During that period we must try to do something good, something useful with our lives. Try to be at peace with yourself and help others share that peace. If you contribute to other people’s happiness, you will find the true goal, the true meaning of life.” – Dalai Lama (Awakening the Buddha Within, Lama Surya Das)

Rishikesh – Land of the Sages

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I am lucky enough to have been to India three times so far. I still yearn to go back and explore more, that’s what this magnificent land does to you. My first trip was back in 2008, and I went with my yoga teachers and a group of other students from the Jivananda Centre. I’m glad I didn’t go alone the first time, as it can be quite a shock. But now I feel confident to travel alone in India and actually prefer it, it’s such a spiritual experience and sometimes you just need the space to be alone with yourself. (The Mother Ganges river)  We spent one night in Delhi and caught the early train to the holy city of Haridwar. From there we travelled by taxi up to Rishikesh, often referred to as ‘the world capital of yoga’, and for good reason. Rishikesh is located in the foothills of the Himalayas, and embodies a very special kind of energy, you can try just about any kind of yoga and the town is abound with ashrams and …

My Inentions for 2013 & beyond

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Another year is upon us and I have high hopes for this one.  I can just feel it’s going to be a great year… a year of change, adventure and excitement. Now is a good time to reflect upon the previous year and so below are my 2012 Intentions. I prefer to set intentions rather than resolutions because everything starts with an intention. As Deepak Chopra explains, “Intention is the starting point of every spiritual path. It is the force that fulfills all of our needs, whether for money, relationships, spiritual awakening, or love. Intention generates all the activities in the universe. Everything that we can see – and even the things we cannot – are an expression of intention’s infinite organizing power.” I most certainly did not achieve all my intentions from last year :(  I didn’t do the 5 Tibetans daily or dance enough (actually hardly at all!). But I do feel like I explored the others… and I think that’s the whole point of intentions, the result/desire unfolds naturally as it should according to universal law – sometimes …

Feel Good Regardless

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A major lesson I’ve had to learn is that you really can’t change people. Even though you really want to help them and hate to see them in pain and deep down you ‘know’ that they’d be happier if they did such and such. But who are we to make this decision? And who are we to rob them of their experience? After all isn’t that what we’ve come here to do… live, learn, grow and hopefully evolve to a higher consciousness. Sometimes I feel like I get caught up in stuff that’s just really not worth getting caught up over… other people’s stuff that I can’t control. I want to reach a place of not needing the condition to change to feel good: “I want to enjoy the benefit of unconditional love. I want the benefit of not needing a condition to change at all. I want the benefit of my focus to be so good that I can focus so clearly, so precisely, so deliberately, that I can feel good, only good about this …

Hello New Earth

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Ok I’m ready… it’s 21.12.2012 and in exactly 16 minutes (1:11pm SAST /11h11am GMT) I’ll join millions around the world meditating for love, awakening and global world peace. The purpose is to resonate the environment with positive vibrations and tune in to the influx of energy towards earth. It is said that the cosmic energies are aligning and our level of consciousness will increase. When millions of people meditate in unity, collective energy is amplified and anything becomes possible. Take a few moments and feel the eternal source that runs through you and everything on this planet. Feel the love that is here to be felt. Take it in and extend it to others. Visualise the world as you’d like it to be. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti x

Give love & more love

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“Appreciation and love, and alignment to that which is Source, is the ultimate “giving back,” so to speak, for in your pain or struggle, you have nothing to give back. What you are living is always an exact replication of your vibrational patterns of thought. Nothing could be more fair than life as you are living it, for as you are thinking, you are vibrating, and as you are vibrating, you are attracting—and so you are always getting back the essence of what you are giving.“  – Abraham

Day 7: A new beginning?

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Today was the 12/12/2012, and at 12 minutes past 12 my mom and I were meditating on the sand at Ballito beach. There was a phenomenal group energy present and it was an awesome experience to have the waves crashing in the background. So what was so special about today? There’s been a lot of conspiracies going around that the world is ending this December, and this is not entirely untrue. I believe that the date 12.12.2012 represents a window of possibility for an evolutionary leap into a new earth, an earth operating on a higher spiritual vibration. And because the whole planet and every thing on it is energy, including ourselves, there will be energetic shifts happening within us too, whether we accept it or not. It also represents the closing of a chapter. Interestingly, in numerology 12 signifies completion, the Divine Mother/Feminine, creative capacity, cosmic harmony and spiritual order. It’s really about releasing old patterns and beliefs that are no longer serving us – things like unworthiness, guilt, resentment, etc. Anything that’s holding you back …